Preface

By Timothy Marr, PhD, Professor of American Studies,
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“These are times that try men’s souls,” Thomas Paine declared in The American Crisis, urging patriots to rally during the darkest days of the Revolutionary War in 1776. In Liberty and the American Idea Tom Harriman issues a similar call to action, urging Americans to work together to confront the deep challenges facing the nation today.

Harriman’s book offers a two-part approach. First, he provides an unflinching diagnosis of the historical, social, and economic forces that have brought us to this critical juncture. He examines the erosion of civil society effected by ideological partisanship, ethical incoherence, rampant materialism, environmental pressures, and media disinformation that divides the nation and weakens its capacity to solve common problems effectively. In the tradition of the American jeremiad, he observes the decline of 21st-century civic life, encouraging a return to the core virtues that underpinned the colonial commonwealth and the moral order enshrined in the Constitution. Harriman challenges our complacency with a status quo that falls short of the promise and greatness of American life.

However, unlike many appraisals of our ills, this book is also dedicated to providing constructive solutions and strategies for how to rebuild a functioning community life. It is a sincere plea to all citizens of goodwill to take pragmatic steps to restore a shattered social trust. Such collaborative engagement and concerted action are essential if we are to work through our shared problems together. 

Harriman’s path forward relies neither on national leaders nor on large institutions but rather depends on individual citizens and the revitalization of our own deep and abiding democratic traditions. He champions the regeneration of a community-based civil society, aligned with American direct democracy, as the key for overcoming our shared obstacles. Meeting today’s challenges demands courageous, creative, and respectful engagement with our neighbors. It requires cultivating dependable interpersonal relationships, the foundation upon which we can rely during difficult times and construct a more prosperous future. Harriman envisions American renewal driven by rebuilding functional communities at the local level through meaningful dialogue, receptive learning, and constructive problem-solving.

Harriman’s fervent, yet reasoned, call echoes Lincoln’s appeal to “the better angel of our nature,” urging us to avoid partisan gridlock and focus on common values.  One of the strengths of his language is that it models the civic virtues and respectful discourse he advocates. This decency and respect are essential for uniting the diverse experiences that make up the lifeblood of thriving communities. Among these qualities are truthfulness, dignity, integrity, trustworthiness, as well as generosity of spirit and the imperative of responsibility.

Throughout this book, Harriman engages with insightful perspectives from many social philosophers and thinkers about democracy, freedom, justice, ethics, individualism, and community, including Robert Nisbet, Charles Taylor, Isaiah Berlin, and Rienhold Neibuhr. The reader is invited into this rich conversation.

In the second part, “The Courage to Build Anew,” Harriman lays out concrete strategies for local conflict resolution, guiding readers in establishing effective engagement practices in their own communities. These chapters offer valuable principles and guidance for negotiating agreements involving effective conflict transformation, consultation, decision-making, and problem-solving.

Harriman has made a vital contribution with this book. Its intended impact will be realized when readers translate its wisdom into action in their own communities. It offers a vision and strategy for reviving an America “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” dedicated to a freedom grounded in responsibility and truthfulness. It charts a course for a mature nation, transformed by hard and patient work, where individualism finds its highest expression in the justice born of mutual and prosperous community life.